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The Little White Horse
The Little White Horse is a low fantasy children's novel by Elizabeth Goudge, first published by the University of London Press in 1946 with illustrations by C. Walter Hodges, and Anne Yvonne Gilbert in 1992. et in 1842, it features a recently orphaned teenage girl who is sent to the manor house of her cousin and guardian in the West Country of England. The estate, village, and vicinity are shrouded in mystery and magic; the "little white horse" is a unicorn. Book description "For a fleeting instant Maria thought she saw a little white horse with a flowing mane and tail, head raised, poised, halted in mid-flight, as though it had seen her and was glad." The beautiful valley of Moonacre is shadowed by the memory of the Moon Princess and the mysterious little white horse. When Maria Merryweather comes there on a visit she finds herself involved with an ancient feud. She is determined to restore peace and happiness to the whole of Moonacre Valley. And Maria usually gets her own way. Plot summary Maria Merryweather becomes an orphan at age 13, upon her father's death in 1842. She is sent to the Moonacre Manor somewhere in the west of England, accompanied by her governess Miss Heliotrope and dog Wiggins. There she finds herself in a world out of time. Her cousin and guardian Sir Benjamin Merryweather is one of the "sun" Merryweathers, and she loves him right away, as sun and moon Merryweathers do. Maria discovers that there is an ancient mystery about the founding of the estate. She is aided by wonderful people and magical beasts, but it is only by self-sacrifice and perseverance, too, that Maria is able to save Moonacre, right the wrongs, reunite lost loves and finally bring peace to the valley. Characters The humans * Maria Merryweather – A smart, thirteen-year-old orphan with red hair and freckles. She rescues a hare in the forest, names it Serena, and keeps it as her pet. * Miss Heliotrope – Maria's governess. She is old-fashioned and very tall, with forget-me-not-blue eyes. * Sir Benjamin Merryweather – Maria's cousin and guardian. * Marmaduke Scarlet – Sir Benjamin's cook and housekeeper. Also the owner of Zachariah the cat. He does not like feminine curiosity and sees his kitchen as a private domain. He is a wonderful chef. * Digweed – Sir Benjamin's coachman and gardener. * Loveday Minette – Sir Benjamin's ex-fiancée. She is known in the book to have a passion for pink geraniums. When their argument broke out about the geraniums, she left Moonacre and got married in town to a lawyer. * Robin – The son of Loveday Minette. * Old Parson – The parson who helps Maria give Paradise Hill back to God. His real name is Louis de Fontenelle and he was Miss Heliotrope's childhood sweetheart. * Monsieur Coque de Noir – the black-hearted owner of the castle in the pine wood and leader of a wicked band. The animals * Zachariah – Marmaduke's special cat. He helps out Maria and Robin. He writes messages in the ashes in the kitchen fireplace. * Wrolf (pronounced Rolf) – A lion who acts as Maria's special protector, called a dog by Sir Benjamin and others. * Serena – A hare that Maria saved from hunters. * Wiggins – Maria's greedy dog. * Periwinkle – Maria's grey pony whose other name is Joy-of-the-Ground. Adaptations * The 1994 television mini-series Moonacre was based on The Little White Horse. * In 2008, the book was adapted into a film called The Secret of Moonacre. Praises Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling mentioned that The Little White Horse was her favourite childhood book.